Motorsports

December 31, 2012

Donny Shultz (right) helps an interested motorcycle enthusiast sample the Lean Machine of the Performance Riding School. The machine's purpose is to give students a clear picture of how the body's position changes as a rider enters, apexes and exits a corner. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

In the dead of winter, the best dreams of motorcyclists seem distant and might lie dormant. But thanks to the International Motorcycle Shows, sponsored by Progressive Insurance and being staged across America, there’s still the opportunity to mingle with the best of the new and some of the old machines of motorcycling. There’s also the chance to mingle with like-minded individuals; even those whose achievements as racers seem to separate them from the rest of us.

There were about 70 exhibits at the Seattle show, December 14-16, which not only included all the major motorcycle manufacturers and a variety of aftermarket producers, but also the 2013 Morgan three-wheeler; originally conceived in the thirties (of the last century) to broach the British tax law levied on automobiles.

The Bodywork of the Morgan 3-Wheeler is sheet aluminum bent into shape, while the frame is steel tubing. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

In today’s America, it’s in the netherworld between motorcycles and automobiles. The NHSTA (National Highway Safety and Traffic Administration) classifies it officially as a car, so a helmet is not required. Early reviews – one delivered on-line by Jay Leno – have pronounced it stable enough that only racing would probably require one.

The engine powering the Morgan is a two-liter V-twin from Wisconsin-based S&S engines. It has a 56 degree V between the cylinders, double-overhead camshafts and four valve cylinder heads. It produces 80 horsepower and an estimated (according to S&S) 103 lb./ft. of torque at 3,250 rpm. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

The 2013 Morgan 3-Wheeler started out as a concept of industrial designer Peter Larsen, owner of Liberty Motors in Seattle. It was based on the original Morgan three-wheeler. Charles Morgan, grandson of Morgan founder, HFS Morgan, found out about Larsen’s concept in 2010, and saw its potential. He then had an English engineer tweak it a bit, for example the front suspension. Now, Liberty Motors is now one of several American distributors.

Those interested in racing could also find an exhibit of the Washington Motorcycle Road Racing Association. Another was staged by the Mazda-Laguna Seca Raceway of the Monterey peninsula in California.

The 2006 Honda 125 RSR motorcycle of Tim O'Mahoney, President of the Washington Motorcycle Road-Racing Association. It was the last generation of the 125 RSR before Honda ceased production, he said. It also has some aftermarket modifications including: aftermarket wheels, a widebody fairing and Olin shock-absorbers. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

March 07, 2012

The 1957 Chevrolet Corvette that rewrote the record books of drag strips, around the country, during the 1970s. It became known as "Cheaterville" because those it raced against couldn't accept its winning ways. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

In November of last year, the venerable Chevrolet small block V8 celebrated six decades of being inserted into 100 million cars and trucks. One of the best examples of what it was capable of doing is inserted in the engine bay of a 1957 Chevrolet Corvette; nicknamed "Cheaterville" by its second owner.

This Corvette came from the factory with a 283 cubic-inch V8, topped by a Rochester fuel injection unit. It was good for 283 horsepower. Backing up the engine was a four-speed manual transmission.

Jack Murray, an Oregon state resident is believed to be the first person to have owned it. He took it out on a variety of road courses in Oregon and did reasonably well. Exact details of that stage of its existence are sketchy and the only documentation is a photo of the car, racing on a road course, with a hole in the front where something was hit.

But it was with its second owner, Mike Malick of Kent, Washington, that it became best known. He bought it from Murray, sometime in 1965. Malick didn't have much interest in road-racing, but instead took the Corvette out to what was then known as Seattle International Raceway, just outside of Kent. He modified the fuel injection unit's interior plenum for better fuel delivery. The outside of the fuel injection unit was modified to make it look stock, according to current owner, Bill Cotter of Seattle.

Additionally, a switch was installed to lock the brakes, for a better launch in the quarter-mile. The results were more than even Malick might have expected. The Corvette ended up at the 1972 NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) Winternationals in February of 1972; and on the sixth of February, it became the first Corvette in its class -- Super Stock -- run the quarter mile in just 11 seconds. As a result, it also won its class, at that same race.

Malick's Corvette acquired a reputation for winning, so much so that his competitors refused to accept that a 283 cubic-inch V8 could do what it did. Indeed, he was challenged so many times for breaking the rules, that he showed his sense of humor by painting the name of "Cheaterville" on the sides of the car; along with having someone put flames on the sides and nose. In its "Cheaterville" make-up, it was the centerfold of Chevy Power magazine in 1974.

Malick ceased to campaign the "Cheaterville" in the 1980s, but held onto it. He'd bring it out for Chevrolet shows, to bring back memories. Finally, around the turn of the century, he retired and took to driving a RV to Arizona in the winter, and sold the Corvette to Bill Cotter of Seattle.

"I'm a road racer myself; but I prepared it for vintage drag racing," said Cotter. "I liked all the room inside of the car. It had a removable hard-top; with a hard top, you don't need a roll-bar."

The interior of the "Cheaterville" Corvette is really spacious, due to the fact that, when raced with its removable hard top, no roll bar needed to be installed. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

A cosmetic restoration was done by Byers Custom Restoration of Kent. Cotter had the fuel injection unit on the engine carefully removed. He then installed a four-barrel carburetor and had a special air cleaner made.

The 283 cubic-inch V8 in the "Cheaterville" Corvette is now fitted with a four-barrel carburetor and a custom fabricated air cleaner; however, Bill Cotter the current owner has saved the fuel injection unit that was original equipment. Moreover, the engine block and transmission are "matching numbers" -- original to the car. (Photos by Terry Parkhurst)

Repeated attempts to contact Mike Malick,via two telephone numbers on an old business card, one for the RV's winter home in Arizona, were unsuccessful. But the car he named "Cheaterville" goes on, showing future generations what could be achieved with a small block V8 in a lightweight Corvette. -- Terry Parkhurst

Note: the "Cheaterville" is for sale and those interested can learn more by contacting Jeri Drager, at Drager's Classics in Shoreline, Washington by telephone at (206) 533-9600 or by e-mail: dragers@mac.com

The VIN tag, inside a door jam on the "Cheaterville," matches the numbers on the side of the 283 cubic-inch V8's block. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

Herman Petersen started drag racing at the age of 16, going to a quarter-mile long racetrack in Bremerton, Washington, back in 1958. About 10 years later, he was driving a dragster purpose-built to go as fast as possible down a quarter-mile track. It was a race car with minimum bodywork, exposed frame rails, small wheels up front and huge racing tires called “slicks,” due to lack of tread, on the rear.

The template was tagged “a rail job,” by racers inspired to prove their mettle on quarter-mile long tracks. It first debuted in the 1950s, at tracks around the country called “drag strips.” That led racers to call them “dragsters.” Drivers who became well known in this emerging form of motorsports, included Don Garlits in Florida and Tommy Ivo in California. Like them, drag-racing became Mr. Petersen’s passion; but he made it work for him, too.

“My theory was, if the car was sitting in Poulsbo, it wasn’t making money. Wherever there was a national event, I went to it,” he said, recalling racing events he went to, up and down the West Coast of America and up into Canada.

“The first car I raced, was a used chassis; put my own engine in it. I raced it for one year, got my feet wet. Then in 1969, I ordered a brand-new chassis from Woody Gilmore Racing, down in Downey, California,” he said. Like most ultimate dragsters of that era, his car was powered by a Chrysler hemispherical (cylinder) head V8, specifically one from a 1958 Chrysler. When topped with a 6:71 supercharger, it produced 3,000 horsepower, by running a fuel mixture that was usually about 86 to 88 percent nitro methane; the rest of the fuel mixture is methanol. The fuel mix earned such racecars the name of “Top Fuel” dragsters.

That racecar tied the national record of 6.54 seconds elapsed time for a quarter mile, at Bremerton Raceway in 1971.

“It was still affordable (to race) when I started out, Mr. Petersen said. “Everything originated in Detroit, when I first ran, even the supercharger - although we reworked it. My race car ran with a 392 cubic-inch block, from a Chrysler Imperial that I was given $100 for, after pulling the engine and giving the rest to a salvage yard.”

He sold that front-engine dragster, later in 1971, and then went on to build and drive the first rear-engine Top Fuel dragster in the Pacific Northwest. It had a custom built engine.

“I ran with the second Donavan-built 417 cubic-inch V8 - a replica of the 1957 Chrysler “hemi,” but with an aluminum block, equipped with steel sleeves,” he recalled. “It was stronger than a cast-iron engine block; that meant more (supercharger) boost and nitro.”

He took that car down to Lion’s Drag Strip in California and tied the national record of running a quarter mile in 6:14 seconds.

In 1973, while driving his rear engine Top Fuel dragster, wiht a chassis built by Woody Gilmore, Heidelberg Beer became his sponsor. It was an indicator of his professionalism. That car, named the “Heidelberg Hauler,” won the 1973 Gatornationals in Florida, tying a national record for the quarter-mile of 6.08 seconds. In that car, he also had a fiery crash, in July of 1973, that sidelined him. He spent three-and-half months in the Orange County Hospital burn center.

While he was in the hospital, his partner Sam Fitz, had another rear-engine dragster built, with a streamlined body. Olympia Beer became his sponsor, along with the Justice Brothers. Woody Gilmore built the car. It was constructed entirely out of aluminum, with a monocoque front end. However, its weight -- about 200 pounds more than his previous racecar -- made it less competitive; after 19 runs down various quarter-mile racetracks, he retired it.

He then went back to driving a conventional front-engine/rear drive dragster. That car, with sponsorship again from Olympia Beer and the Justice Brothers, was successful, winning the 1974 pision Six Championship and the IHRA (International Hot Rod Association) Gateway Nationals, in St. Louis, Missouri.

In 1975, Mr. Petersen went on to run the quarter mile in just 5.87 seconds in that car, while achieving a speed of 241.96 mph, at the end of a quarter-mile.

In June of 1976, he quit driving dragsters: but continued his involvement with racing a car, for another year, with his friend, Rob Bruins, doing the driving. “He was a natural,” Mr. Petersen enthused. “It cost $3,500 for the (engine) block in my last racecar - $2,000 for a billet (all solid steel) crankshaft. It was $15,000 for each engine, by that time,” he recalled.

Mr. Petersen then ran an auto glass business through 1988. He went on to operate Bar B-Q Charters, a sport fishing business in southeast Alaska, about four months of the year; while living in Belfair, Washington with his wife of 49 years, Sandy. He quit doing that, about two years ago and now runs Cackle Thunder Performance, which builds Chrysler "hemi" V8 engines, to run on gasoline or alcohol, for use in street rods or custom cars.

His first car went through seven different owners. Then in December of 2004, Mr. Petersen found it and bought it back. Now, he’s demonstrating its capabilities, by exhibiting it and, on occasion, running the car in place, with the engine at full throttle.

He’s part of a unique band of brothers who take their “fuel” dragsters, to what Mr. Petersen calls “cackle-fests,” adding that the cars are run only to give those who’ve never heard a supercharged nitro-fueled engine, wide open, a chance to hear one.

“We can’t race them; there's no driveshaft hooked up to the rear-ends. We just whack the throttle and take the engine to about a third of the way (to full power), to about 4,000 rpm, for an instant," he explained, and proudly adds, “My car is the loudest on the West Coast. I’ve measured it: 125.8 decibels."

Two Top Fuel dragsters owned by "Bucky"Austin of Bucky Austin Racing, run in place (no power to rear wheels) at full throttle, in a demonstration of what drag racing was like, when Top Fuel racecars were coming into their own. It's loud. Notice the people plugging their ears at this showing, at the Edmonds Car Show. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

“We let all the promoters know we’re available and do about 8 to 10 bookings a year,” Mr. Petersen explained. “We’ve done shows at car dealerships - a Dodge dealership in Lynnwood, Washington -- and other events. We’ve got a car show up in Abottsford, British Columbia we did in April and we’ll be doing that again in the coming year.”

Jerry King is another such former racer. He restored a car he drove, as part of a team that included his partners, the late Jack Cross and Jerry Mann, from 1966 to 1970. However, the Cross-Mann-King dragster is what was known as a “Junior Fuel” car; one with an engine that was not supercharged and was limited to 310 cubic-inches displacement (or 3 pounds of total weight, per cubic inch).

It set the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) national record for C/fuel dragsters at 178.39 mph, using just a 265 cubic-inch Chevrolet V8 engine. When NHRA discontinued the class at the end of 1966, the car was lengthened and a 309 cubic-inch engine, of Chevrolet origin, was installed. It then ran the quarter-mile in just 7.42 seconds and hit 199.86 mph at the end of that distance.

Bucky Austin, owner of Bucky Austin Racing in Puyallup, Washington, owns two other dragsters that are part of the group. Both of those use Chrysler hemi-head V8s and were driven competitively, from 1969-’71. One, equipped with a full body over its frame rails, was owned and driven in its prime, by Hank Johnson of Marysville, Washington. The other, with mostly exposed frame rails and a short body, was driven by Jerry Ruth of Burien, Washington.

Both these Top Fuel dragsters, shown at the Edmonds (Washington) Car Show, are owned by Bucky Austin. The full-bodied one (on the left) was originally owned and driven by Hank Johnson from Marysville, Washington; the short-bodied one (on the right) was originally owned and driven by Jerry Ruth from Burien, Washington. Both dragsters were raced circa 1969-'71. Both also sport the engine most often found in Top Fuel dragsters of that era: the Chrysler hemi-head V8, equipped with a 6:71 supercharger. (Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

Running nitro-methane in an internal combustion engine could be disastrous; but it was done without computer analysis, in the 1960s and ‘70s, by studying the engine, after a run.

“With each engine, we’d look at the compression ratio, the timing setting and the pressure the blower (supercharger) produced,” explained Herman Petersen. “You’d read the spark plugs. If they were getting excessive heat, you’d take some nitro out of the fuel mix; or you’d reduce the boost or retard the timing. We usually ran 86 to 88 percent nitro. But if the plugs weren’t burnt, we’d run 88 to 89 percent nitro. Straight nitro would detonate too easily.”

Asked what he thinks of the current Top Fuel dragsters, which can achieve 300 mph by the end of a quarter mile run, Mr. Peterson admits that, “It’s hard to watch races, these days. About 50 percent of the time, one of them will blow an engine, before the finish line; or hurt the engine. The NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) allows two magnetos that are like welding machines, and then, those fuel pumps. You have a 900-foot fuse on a 1,000-foot bomb.”

He added, “That’s not racing; it’s not a realistic way to race. Engines now can cost $50,000. It costs so much more money, without sponsors, you can’t do it.”

But one thing, he’ll admit, hasn’t changed from the time he and his fellow competitors checked the plugs; then the key to knowing whether to dial up the boost, change the timing or carefully add more nitro.

“Records are only set to be broken,” Mr. Petersen asserted, “just like any other form of racing.” -- Terry Parkhurst

If you have interest in having an engine built, or have other questions, related to this topic, Herman Petersen, Cackle-Thunder Performance, can be reached via telephone at: 360.710.9245

May 29, 2011

Mel Anthony is an 87 year old man who races the same sort of race-car that he drove as a younger man: a ¾ size “midget” race-car. They're called that because they were originally configured to replicate, albeit on a different scale, the roadsters that dominated the Indianapolis 500, from the time that racing at Indy returned, in the aftermath of the Second World War until the advent of rear-engined race-cars piloted by the likes of Jack Brabham and Jimmy Clark.

Mel is a member of Golden Wheels, the vintage racing fraternity; which works to keep those vintage racing midgets running. Call it history on wheels.

John Nelson, a fellow member of Golden Wheels, got Mel back into a racecar that he owns, at the "Miracle Mile" track in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a few years back. Mel said that, "I hadn't driven (a racecar) in 47 years." But like they say swimming does with the rest of us, it all came back to Mel.

Mel does this based on enthusiasm and having lived right: doing what he loves and keeping in good shape. Indeed, a few years ago, after a physical, a doctor told Mel, “You have the body of a 25 year old man.”

Mel responded, “Yes, in all areas but one.”

Mel's story is now the subject of a new documentary entitled “Smoke, Sand and Rubber” by Greg Brotherton. You can share the action as Mel gets behind the wheel of a midget race-car for the first time in 54 years and takes car #12, out on an oval track in the pacific northwest region of the U.S.

Filled with footage of Mel's racing today, as well as vintage racing footage from the 1940s and '50s, this is a record of racing as it once was, and sometimes still is, in America. Mel's passion for racing, and life, comes through in the stories he tells. Indeed, he demonstrates that racing is a fatal disease, in a different sense than we might first think. Racing might not kill you, but it will take over your life, until you die.

The free, world premiere of this movie (30 minutes) will be at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, May 31, at the Shoreline Community College Theater -- 16101 Greenwood North, Shoreline, Waashington (98133, USA) together with two other documentaries about racing in the Pacific Northwest; total time of program set at 60 minutes; seating starts at 7 pm.

There's also a question-and-answer session with director Greg Brotherton, Mel Anthony himself and his son, Dennis Anthony. (Look at www.freneticproductions.com for more information on this film and DVDs of same.)

The next scheduled screening, as part of the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) is on June fifth, at the Jewel-box Theater, at 6:15 pm.

Mark Twain once said that, “Age is a matter of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.” Mel Anthony shows the truth of that. – Terry Parkhurst

Footnote: Mel Anthony passed away, at the age of 92, on October 6, 2015.

February 01, 2011

Seattle is the city most people associate with caffeine, thanks to a certain Mr. Howard Schultz. But south, about 40 miles south, in the city of Tacoma, the first Saturday of every month sees a mix of Caffeine and Gasoline. That's where people mix both – figuratively speaking – at meet-ups on the four acres of a retail facility owned by major car guy, and detailing entrepreneur, Richard Griot.

(Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

On the first Saturday of January, between 8 and 10 am, about 200 enthusiasts gathered to see and hear a 1977 McLaren M23-012 F1 car's 490 horsepower Cosworth-Ford DOHC V8 break the morning silence. The McLaren is one of several owned by Griot.

After its second run in place, the McLaren F1 was parked inside what's known as the “car care school” area, which measures 1,570 square feet. There's also a 3,200 square foot auto display area, where you can find other race cars owned by Griot such as a 1967 McLaren M6A, joined by a 1968 McLaren M4A, a 1972 Lola T290 and a 1985 Porsche 962C.

(Photo by Terry Parkhurst)

Also featured are cars from other notables, such as Peter Brock's “Datzilla,” a vintage Datsun 510 with a small block V8 situated inside the engine bay. Call it the ultimate example of Brock Racing Enterprises DNA.

(Photos by Terry Parkhurst)

Out in the parking area, in front of the 1,700 square foot retail store, there was an eclectic mix of automobiles expressly convened for those who love the sound of engines in the morning.

“This is just what I need in my '87 Chevy tow truck,” said a fellow enthusiast. “It's got a mellow sound with a nice lope to it.”

Rushforth assured those interested that, “It's very stout, very reliable. You can look at www.LS1 Tech.com and on the conversion section of that forum; you can literally have mailed to your front door an engine with 1,000 horsepower that will go into anything.”

That interchange of ideas goes with the territory, at these ultimate enthusiast events the first Saturday of every month. The featured car for February's gathering is a 1967 McLaren M6A built for the '67 Can-Am series. Expect to hear the sound of a race engine at full chat, sometime early on that day, just west of the I5 freeway. - Terry Parkhurst

Note: Griot's Garage is located at 3333 South 38th Street in Tacoma, Washington. Caffiene and Gasoline events start at 8 a.m. and last until 10 a.m. Telephone for the facility is (888) 246-2646.

March 10, 2010

A DOHC 16 valve in-line four-cylinder engine displacing just 255 cubic inches, yet fully capable of producing 500 horsepower, normally aspirated, powers the “Zink Pink” Champ car of John and Barbara Nelson. Thing is, the car was built for racing way back in 1955. Honda wasn’t the first to exploit the full potential of four bangers. Offenhauser, who made the engine in the Nelson’s car, was doing that long before the S2000 ever made it to America.

Equipped with “Pent-roof” combustion chambers, so as to allow two valves on either side of the pistons, John Nelson says, “It’s a simple engine, but overbuilt in many ways. Dean Bonner, who used to run cars for Atlas Van Lines, told me it was capable of 1,000 horsepower, running a mix of about 20 percent nitro. That crankshaft in the bottom end was built that strong.”

Offenhauser also built the transmission, with three speeds forward. It looks somewhat like the transmission you’d find in a 1930s Ford model A.

“Champ cars started out using model A transmissions, since Ford had such good steel,” explained Nelson. The rear end is a Halibrand “quick change” transmission; so called because there is a removable center section, useful for swapping out different gears, for different track conditions.

And what about that color, so-called “Zink Pink”? Well, it is, in fact, the same color you’d have found on a 1955 Ford Victoria.

“The story is that, when A.J. Watson, who built this car for owner John Zink, he wanted to pick a color that would stand out,” explained Nelson. “He looked out the shop door and saw a 1955 Ford Victoria and that was it. It’s now painted the same ‘Dusty Rose and Shawnee White’ it was then. Bill Seidelman, who did the paint for me, got the original color formulation from Ford.”

The Nelsons’ car is just one of many in Golden Wheels, a fraternity designed to keep alive and running the midget ¾ race cars that the likes of A.J. Foyt cut their teeth in. The drivers range in age from 45 to the early 80s. About half of them are ex-professional racers with championships in their background.

I used to race on the streets. Then, I became president of a hot rod club, The Kings. My dad and I built a midget racecar that’s still in the club.

“The car I have now, had (actually) been converted into a midget racecar; it was 88 inches, when I got it. A section had been taken out of the frame. We – Bill Seidelman and myself – put a piece back in and now it’s back to 96 inches.”

The club consists of midgets, sprint cars, roadsters and one Champ car, that of the Nelsons. All of these machines are open wheel, oval track racing cars. Most have been restored to the era in which they were built, so they do not have roll cages.

Four-cylinder Offenhauser engines, Ford flatheads (valves not in the cylinder head), Chevrolet and Chrysler Hemi V8s, along with a variety of in-line six and four cylinder engines, can be found. There’s even a four-cylinder engine from a Chevrolet Vega in one car.

The racecar with the most unusual engine is Hal Schlegel’s 1946 Solar Engineering built midget with a Hal engine. There’s no connection between Schlegel’s first name and his car’s engine, other than mere coincidence.

“They’re rarer than hen’s teeth,” said Schlegel of the engine in his car. The double-overhead camshaft Hal has two series 60 (Ford) connecting rod set-ups, welded together on each cylinder. The Hal four-cylinder engine had five main bearings versus an Offenhauser three.

The Hal engine was the brainchild of Harry Hosterman, who cast his own block after putting his own DOHC cylinder head on a four-cylinder model A block. Schlegel’s car engine displaces more than the standard Ford block, but he isn’t sure exactly how much more. It is a “full Hal” with Hal block and cylinder heads and the pistons are “right up against the valves,” he explained.

Hosterman made some 220 cubic inch engines – the exact displacement of most Offenhauser midget engines – to compete with Offy on the track. Those 220 cubic inch engines were known as “Big Hals.”

Golden Wheels came into being in 1976, when racer Pike Green, was told by another driver at a funeral, “We need to find another way to meet, other than this; according to John Nelson. That led to the formation of Golden Wheels, based in Washington State; but with members from throughout the northwest. They visit tracks in Washington, Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia, Vancouver. This year, there’s a race planned down in Arizona.

Golden Wheels has as its goals, not only keeping oval track racecars running for exhibition races, as well as static displays, but also to help needy families or retired racecar drivers, who had fallen on hard times.

"We now help Sunshine Acres down in Phoenix and local food banks,” explained Nelson. Phoenix was where Pike Green ended up, before he passed away himself, a few years ago.

Golden Wheels usually has about 10 exhibition races scheduled a year. There are also static displays, usually held in conjunction with car shows. For up-to-date information, look at the Golden Wheels web site – www.goldenwheels.org. - Terry Parkhurst

For information on a documentary film about Mel Anthony, who campaigned a midget racecar with the assistance of his son, Dennis (turning wrenches) look at: www.freneticproductions.com